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'Managers were always rostered on a Sunday to avoid penalty rates,' they said.

Another added: 'From my perspective, I find it very hard to believe it was accidental' and that staff were still not getting paid overtime.

Speaking up: According to one worker, staff were put on salary so Made Establishment could avoid forking out any extra costs to staff and skip overtime

The Sydney Morning Herald reports Made Establishment denied the claims, and that the Fair Work Ombudsman is investigating.

Meanwhile, Channel Ten has rubbished claims that Masterchef's ratings could suffer due to the underpayment scandal.

The network stood by its star chef, arguing that 'it is ridiculous and illogical' for the 38-year-old's payment troubles to affect the ratings of the long-running show, news.com.au reported.

George's Made Establishment was advised by the Fair Work Ombudsman more than 18 months ago that 162 staff across three Melbourne restaurants were being underpaid.

'It is ridiculous and illogical': Channel Ten rubbishes claims that Masterchef will be impacted by scrutiny of judge George

Channel Ten told News Corp Australia that the George had the 'full support' of the network, adding that the restaurateur was already taking steps to rectify the underpayments.

'George Calombaris and his team at Made are dealing with the incorrect payments made to employees to ensure every affected employee receives their full entitlements,' a spokesperson said.

Media analyst Steve Allen also told the website he didn't believe Masterchef would suffer because of George's underpayments.

Supported: Channel Ten told News Corp Australia that the George had the 'full support' of the network

He cited the controversy around My Kitchen Rules' judge Pete Evans and his paleo lifestyle, which have not impacted the Channel Seven show's ratings.

'It would have been a disaster in a couple of weeks or during the early run of MasterChef Australia 2017 but it has been well handled by expediting it now,' Steve said.

George was forced to apologise after his restaurant business underpaid staff by a whopping $2.6 million.

George's Made Establishment was advised by the Fair Work Ombudsman more than 18 months ago that 162 staff across three Melbourne restaurants were being underpaid.

But underpaid staff had to wait until Monday to receive their full entitlements.

Paying up: MasterChef host George Calombaris (pictured) has been forced to apologise after his restaurant business underpaid staff by a whopping $2.6 million

The business, which confirmed the underpayments through internal and external analysis, put the matter down to 'historically poor processes.'

George told staff he was 'devastated by what had happened' and 'was so sorry we have messed up and let you down'.

'We received a heads-up from FWO [Fair Work Ombudsman] more than 18 months ago, which should have resulted in us fixing our systems sooner,' he said in an email to staff on Monday.

'Regrettably, our attention to detail at that time wasn't at a level it should have been but we now have a CEO and Human Resources Manager in place, supported by good processes and systems to properly support the business.

Employed: Some of the underpaid staff were employees of Melbourne restaurant Gazi (pictured)

Another venue: Of the 162 staff who were underpaid a total of $2.6 million, some were employees of Hellenic Republic (pictured)

'We are truly sorry for the impact this has had on our incredibly hard-working, talented and dedicated staff.'

Staff affected were employees of Made Establishment restaurants The Press Club, Gazi and Hellenic Republic, while those at the group's chain Jimmy Grant's were not impacted.

In the same email, the chief executive of Made Establishment and the board of directors said the business should have acted quicker to rectify the issue.

'Regrettably, concerns around our payroll system were brought to the business's attention more than 18 months ago by the Fair Work Ombudsman and further investigation by us at this time should have uncovered the problem and allowed the business to act with more speed and focus to sort it out,' the email said.

The business also said about half the affected team members were found to have been paid a higher base salary than they were entitled to but all employees had not receive overtime payments owed.

Those higher salaries will not be lowered, the business said.

Underpaid: Employees at Made Establishments' The Press Club (pictured) were also affected by underpayments